What is blendergis?

domlysz/blendergis — explained in plain English

Analysis updated 2026-06-24

★ 8,950PythonAudience · designerComplexity · 3/5Setup · moderate

Mindmap

mindmap
  root((repo))
    What it does
      Real terrain import
      Map integration
      3D geography
    Data sources
      OpenStreetMap
      NASA elevation
      Satellite imagery
    Features
      Terrain mesh
      Object placement
      Camera alignment
    Setup
      Blender addon
      API key needed
      Wiki docs

mindmap root((repo)) What it does Real terrain import Map integration 3D geography Data sources OpenStreetMap NASA elevation Satellite imagery Features Terrain mesh Object placement Camera alignment Setup Blender addon API key needed Wiki docs

Click or tap to explore — scroll the page freely

What do people build with it?

USE CASE 1

Import NASA elevation data into Blender to generate an accurate 3D terrain mesh of a specific real-world location.

USE CASE 2

Pull OpenStreetMap building and road geometry into a Blender scene to model a real city neighborhood for visualization or animation.

USE CASE 3

Overlay satellite imagery onto a 3D terrain mesh to create a photorealistic landscape render.

USE CASE 4

Align a Blender camera to real-world coordinates using a geotagged photograph for a compositing or virtual production project.

What is it built with?

PythonBlender

How does it compare?

	domlysz/blendergis	jianchang512/clone-voice	ermaozi/get_subscribe
Stars	8,950	8,950	8,943
Language	Python	Python	Python
Setup difficulty	moderate	hard	easy
Complexity	3/5	3/5	1/5
Audience	designer	general	general

Figures from each repo's GitHub metadata at analysis time.

How do you get it running?

Difficulty · moderate Time to first run · 30min

Requires Blender 2.83 or later, downloading elevation data from OpenTopography requires a free API key.

So what is it?

BlenderGIS is an add-on for Blender, the free 3D modeling and animation software, that connects it to geographic data sources. It allows you to bring real-world map data, terrain elevation, satellite imagery, and city geometry directly into a Blender scene, so you can create accurate 3D representations of real places. The add-on supports importing several common geographic data formats, including Shapefile vector files, raster images, GeoTIFF digital elevation models, and OpenStreetMap XML exports. You can also pull data directly from the internet while working inside Blender, including web map tiles displayed in the 3D viewport, OpenStreetMap building and road geometry, and elevation data sourced from NASA satellite measurements. The OpenTopography service, which provides elevation data, now requires a free API key obtained by registering on their website. Once geographic data is loaded, the add-on provides tools to work with it in 3D. You can generate a terrain mesh from elevation data using a triangulation method that builds a surface from contour lines or point data. Other features include dropping objects onto a terrain surface so they sit correctly, analyzing terrain using Blender's shader system to visualize slopes or other properties, and setting up cameras aligned to real-world coordinates from geotagged photographs. The README is brief and points to a separate wiki for installation instructions, a quick-start guide, and a flowchart showing the different ways terrain can be built from geographic data. The add-on requires Blender version 2.83 or later.

Copy-paste prompts

Prompt 1

I want to create a 3D model of a mountain valley in Blender using real elevation data. Walk me through using BlenderGIS to import a GeoTIFF elevation file and generate the terrain mesh.

Prompt 2

How do I import OpenStreetMap building geometry for a city block into Blender using BlenderGIS? What settings control which features like roads and buildings are included?

Prompt 3

I want to display a web map tile as a background in the Blender 3D viewport using BlenderGIS. Show me how to set this up and which map sources are supported.

Prompt 4

What is the OpenTopography API key, why does BlenderGIS need it, and how do I get and configure it so I can download elevation data directly inside Blender?

Frequently asked questions